Coffee is a popular beverage that can be enjoyed both hot and cold and in a variety of forms, including but not limited to espresso, lattes, iced coffees, and the like. A particularly popular form of coffee is brewed coffee in which hot water or steam is percolated through roasted coffee bean grounds in a process referred to as brewing.
It has been shown that the most flavorful brewed coffee is achieved when freshly roasted coffee beans are ground and brewed, and consumed by a person within the first one hour of the brewing process. It is accepted that the optimal flavor for a coffee beverage is achieved by consuming the product within the first 30 minutes after brewing. Such a short duration of time between brewing a coffee beverage and its consumption limits the exposure time of the coffee to heat and oxygen which can react with and/or otherwise cause the decomposition and/or polymerization of one or more of the many chemical compounds responsible for the coffee-based beverage's desirable tastes and aroma—chemical processes that can reduce the desired coffee flavors and introduce undesirable bitter and/or stale flavors.
Conventional wisdom has long held that coffee cannot be stored for extended periods of time without loss of flavor. In an effort to address this problem, instant coffee using the process of freeze-drying was developed and patented. Although the freeze drying process does produce a form of coffee that can be stored for extended period of times, the freeze dried product must be reconstituted in hot water producing a beverage that has a taste and flavor that no longer resembles freshly brewed coffee.
In short, it would be highly desirable to provide a coffee-based beverage and, indeed, other types of brewed beverages that can be stored for extended periods of time without exhibiting a concomitant loss of flavor and/or other undesirable deteriorations in taste, and which can be consumed without requiring reconstituting.